Responding to a court order, the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service today designated 165,211 acres along 1,798
miles of coastline in eight southern states as critical habitat for
the wintering population of piping plover, a shorebird listed as threatened
under the Endangered
Species Act.

Under the Act, critical habitat refers to specific geographic areas
that are essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered
species and may require special management considerations. A designation
does not set up a preserve or refuge and only applies to situations
where Federal funding or a Federal permit is involved. It has no regulatory
impact on private landowners taking actions on their land that do not
involve Federal funding or permits.

“As a listed species, the plover already is protected under the Act
wherever it occurs,” said Sam D. Hamilton, the Service’s director for
the Southeast Region. “Since wintering birds are less vulnerable to
disturbance than nesting birds, we do not expect this designation to
have much affect on beach use along the southeastern Atlantic or Gulf
coasts beyond those measures already required to protect the species.”

The designation includes shoreline habitat in North and South Carolina,
Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas.

The Service proposed in June 2000 to designate 2.1 million acres along
1,672 miles of coastline as critical habitat for wintering plovers.
The final rule significantly reduces the acreage amount by removing
a proposed 1,640-foot buffer extending into the water. As a result of
removing the buffer, the actual mileage of coastline increased slightly
since inlets and headlands of the coastline are delineated more precisely.
The designation now includes no areas covered by water, but land down
to the low tide mark will be considered critical habitat. Today’s decision
took into consideration more than 6,000 comments received during a comment
period that included 13 public meetings and nine public hearings held
throughout the eight states.

“The comments we received from the public were a key component ensuring
a final decision that reflects the best scientific and economic data
available,” Hamilton said.

The piping plover (Charadrius melodus) is a stocky, sand-colored
bird that roosts and forages on the beaches, dunes, sandy and muddy
flats of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts in these states. The adult has
yellow-orange legs, a black band across the forehead from eye to eye,
and a black ring around the base of the neck.

Like other plovers, it runs in short starts and stops. When still,
the piping plover blends into the pale background of open, sandy habitat
on beaches where it feeds and nests. The bird’s name is derived from
its call notes, plaintive bell-like whistles that are often heard before
the birds are seen.

In recent decades, piping plover populations have drastically declined,
especially in the Great Lakes region as development and recreational
uses of nesting areas have reduced available habitat.

“In the nesting areas, assuring conservation in areas with development
and recreational use of vital shoreline nesting habitat has been a primary
focus of our recovery efforts for the plover,” said Hamilton. “In the
wintering areas, we are working to ensure there is good forage and roosting
habitat so enough birds survive to migrate back to their nesting sites.”

Three populations of piping plovers exist in the United States. The
most endangered is the Great Lakes population, which is classified as
endangered and encompasses only 32 breeding pairs. The Northern Great
Plains and Atlantic Coast populations are classified as threatened and
include 1,398 and 1,372 breeding pairs respectively.

Birds from all three populations build their nests in the north but
spend the winter along the south Atlantic and Gulf coasts, sometimes
arriving as early as mid-July. Since the three populations are indistinguishable
from one another while on their overlapping wintering grounds, all plovers
are classified as threatened in their wintering areas. The Service listed
the species under Endangered
Species Act in 1985, but did not designate critical habitat at the
time.

In 1996, Defenders of Wildlife
filed a lawsuit against the Department
of the Interior and the Service, for failing to designate critical
habitat for the endangered Great Lakes population of the piping plover.
A similar suit was filed in 1997 to designate critical habitat for the
Northern Great Plains population of the piping plover. The Service proposed
critical habitat for all wintering populations on July 6, 2000, and
was ordered by the court to publish a final designation by April 30,
2001. That date was extended to June 29 after a 60-day extension requested
by the Service.

A complete description of the final decision for the wintering populations
of piping plovers will be published in the Federal Register on July
10, 2001. Information including the final designation, and the final
economic analysis will also available at the Service’s website Maps
are available now at the site.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting
and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing
benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 94-million-acre
National Wildlife Refuge System
that encompasses more than 535 national wildlife refuges, thousands
of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates
70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological
services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws,
administers the Endangered
Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally
significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such
as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts.
It also oversees the Federal Aid
program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes
on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.